


My Khaleesi

by summerdownturn



Series: How to Train Your Dragon [2]
Category: Twenty One Pilots
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst, Dragon!Josh, Fluff, Game of Thrones references (no spoilers), Harpy!Debby, Human!Tyler, Josh is insecure, M/M, Siren!Jenna, Slight Body Dysphoria, Slight Panic Attack, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-07
Updated: 2015-07-07
Packaged: 2018-04-08 03:06:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4288371
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/summerdownturn/pseuds/summerdownturn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Continuation of The Flora and the Fauna. </p>
<p>Tyler finds out a few weird quirks Josh has, including scales and fire breathing. Josh is not sure how he feels about this.</p>
            </blockquote>





	My Khaleesi

**Author's Note:**

> Josh has a slight panic attack and I touch a bit on his body dysphoria, so be cautious reading if these may be triggering. The next parts will likely have more of this, since I'm kinda using this fic to vent a bit on my own anxiety and gender dysphoria issues, so.

Tyler and Josh had been dating for six months before Tyler saw another part of Josh’s dragon anatomy. Well, the term _anatomy_ made it seem far less innocent than it actually was.

After their first date, they became inseparable and spent most of winter break together; Josh going to Tyler’s basketball games and Tyler coming over to Josh’s apartment to have Netflix binges. Even though they spent nearly six months together, it wasn’t until a rainy day in May that Tyler learned another interesting fact about Josh.

Josh had picked Tyler up from his dorm to take him back to his apartment. They had a season of The X-Files to watch, junk food to consume, and Tyler couldn’t drive himself over because his car was at the mechanic. Tyler would have walked, but it was raining in torrents outside and Josh wouldn’t risk Tyler getting sick. However, when Tyler got out of Josh’s car and started splashing in the puddles in front of his apartment complex, Josh let them indulge a little and he too joined in.

What resulted was a shivering jog up to Josh’s apartment to get warm and dry. Josh’s hands shook slightly as he tried to unlock the door, and Tyler trying to bury himself deep into Josh’s side wasn’t helping. Josh didn’t get cold that often, but it wasn’t every day that he was trapped in freezing, wet clothes, so he couldn’t stop himself from shivering.

Tyler cried out in victory as the door to the apartment swung open, and he immediately left his boyfriend’s side for the intense warmth of the apartment and a change into Josh’s dry clothes. Tyler often complained about the heat of Josh’s apartment, especially when they cuddled (Josh was practically a furnace already), but it was one of Josh’s many quirks that he had come to live with. Plus, he wasn’t exactly complaining about the warmth now.

Josh shook his head and huffed out a laugh as Tyler grabbed some spare clothes from the bedroom and locked himself in the only bathroom in the flat. Josh toed off his shoes and peeled off his hoodie at the door before he stepped further into his apartment, although it didn’t really matter, because Tyler already left a damp trail throughout the living area. He carefully made sure to sidestep any puddles on his way to his room, peeling off his skinny jeans and throwing them into the hamper in the corner, or more likely throwing them _at_ the hamper, because more clothes were _around_ the hamper than _in_ the hamper.

Josh was standing just in a tank top and his boxers, looking for clean clothes, when Tyler emerged from the en-suite bathroom.

“Oh,” Tyler gasped. Josh turned around to find Tyler trying too hard to keep his eyes on Josh’s face. Josh saw his eyes drop down a little and Tyler repeated, “Oh.” Josh’s face flushed nervously and he curled his arms self-consciously around his stomach.

“Sorry. J-just, give me a minute.” Josh stuttered out and turned back to his dresser, rummaging even faster to find a shirt and some basketball shorts that actually match. Josh felt his ears burning as he heard Tyler step over to him. Josh straightened, a plain shirt and black basketball shorts clenched in his hand, when he noticed Tyler was staring at his shoulders. Josh was confused for a second. Why was Tyler starting at his shoulders? Weren’t there much more interesting and _fun_ places Tyler could be staring at instead? Josh followed his gaze.

“Oh.” Josh said in realization. His shoulders were exposed, which meant Tyler could see the dusting of red and pink scales along the tops of his shoulders, then trailed down his deltoids before fading into small flesh-colored scales along his biceps. Tyler had never seen him in a tank top, which Josh reserved for wearing around the apartment because it didn’t hide the white binder holding his wings down very well.

Tyler reached out a tentative hand and laid it down on Josh’s shoulder, marveling at the warmth and smoothness of the scales.

“You never cease to amaze me, Joshua,” Tyler broke the silence with a soft smile adorning his lips, and he patted Josh’s shoulder and kissed his cheek before walking out of the bedroom.

Josh tried to calm his anxious heart. He never knew how Tyler would react to the more supernatural parts of him, and even though Tyler had only reacted well so far, he couldn’t stop convincing himself that in the future Tyler would find him freakish or disgusting and leave him. Josh tried to push his insecurities to the back of his head as he moved to the bathroom to dry his hair and get dressed, but they kept resurfacing. 

What if Tyler decided one day he was done with all of Josh’s weird qualities? Tyler could leave and have Jenna deal with him. Josh was pretty sure siren calls worked on fauna, even though he had never experienced it first hand (that he knows of). Maybe she could drown Josh—he never did that well in bodies of water—and then he wouldn’t have to worry about whether someone could see his wings through a shirt. He wouldn’t have to deal with the pain of binding them. He wouldn’t have to deal with visiting his happy family who proudly displayed their wings and horns while he sat on the back patio watching them fly around without him.

Josh didn’t realize how quickly and loudly he was breathing until he heard a knock on the bathroom door.

“Josh? Are you alright?” Tyler called out. Josh took a deep breath, holding it in before slowly releasing it with a wheeze. He did this until his hands stopped shaking and his head stopped spinning before he replied to Tyler.

“I’m fine, Ty.” His voice was weak and probably unbelievable, but Tyler walked away regardless.

Josh cleared his throat before stripping his tank top off, quickly pulling on his clean shirt so he couldn’t look at his binder for too long, and then he tugged on his basketball shorts. Josh paused to take another moment to breathe—he was _fine_ —before he walked out of the bathroom, carefully avoiding looking at himself in the mirror.

Josh found Tyler in a nest of blankets on the couch, popcorn bowl and remote control in hand. When Josh caught Tyler’s eye after he sat down, Tyler gave him a reassuring smile, but a look that said _we can talk about this later_.

“Ready?”

Josh nodded, taking some blankets for himself and stealing some of the popcorn.

“Hey!” Tyler protested, but Josh just chuckled and relaxed back into the sofa, preparing himself for hours of watching Netflix with his wonderful boyfriend.

* * *

Much of the time Tyler and Josh spent together was time spent on Josh’s couch watching television. But for the holiday, specifically the Fourth of July, Josh convinced Tyler that they should get off of the couch and go out to get some sun. As much as Josh loved spending time with his boyfriend inside, he missed the sun. Josh was like a cat sunbathing whenever he went outside, stretching out to enjoy the warmth on his skin. Josh figured it was a dragon thing, even though he was warm-blooded and didn’t need to rely on the sun to regulate his body temperature. Maybe it was just a trait left over from the reptilian genes in his blood.

Either way, Josh was looking forward to the beach.

Tyler, not so much.

Tyler had taken to protesting by singing loudly to trashy songs on the radio and playing a one-sided version of Slug Bug. Josh didn’t have the heart to tell Tyler that he was infatuated with his singing voice, no matter what pop song Tyler renditioned, and his punches landed on his skin like dandelion fluff.

“We’re almost there, Ty,” Josh said for the umpteenth time after Tyler asked if they were there yet. The beach they were going to was a two-hour drive from Columbus, so Josh had to deal with two hours of Tyler trying to be annoying. Josh liked to think that he was a great boyfriend, but Tyler already drank all the Yoo-hoo and ate all the snacks Josh had provided him with, and they were both starting to get irritated.

Josh sighed in relief when he spotted their exit off of the freeway. However, as Josh took the exit, Tyler seemed even more anxious to get out of the car.

“Man, if I knew you would be so excited about the beach then I would’ve taken you there sooner,” Josh smirked, trying to make light of the situation, but he knew that Tyler’s annoyance was turning into discomfort.

“I don’t wanna go to the beach, I wanna get out of this damn car!” Tyler exclaimed, twisting in his seat and hitting the dash as he tried to get comfortable. “Are we there yet?” He whined, pulling at his seatbelt.

Josh looked at his boyfriend in empathy. “Five more minutes, Ty. I promise.” He reached over to take Tyler’s hand in his, and Tyler sighed and closed his eyes, head resting against the window.

But this time Josh was true to his word, and five minutes later they were pulling into a parking lot. Josh had to hold Tyler back from jumping out of the car while it was still moving, but he shouted in joy when the car stopped and he was allowed out. Josh’s relief was short-lived by Jenna and Debby walking up to them from their car.

“What took you guys so long?” Jenna said with an accusing glance at Josh, but a smile broke out over her face after a moment and she moved to hug both of the boys.

“Missed you too, Jenna,” Josh commented under his breath, grinning at her when he leaned back from their hug. She hit him over the head playfully before Josh heard a high-pitched squeal and tight arms were wrapped around his torso. “Debby!” Josh hugged her back, careful to not squeeze her large feathered wings.

Quickly after Josh and Tyler started dating, they realized their best friends already knew each other, and that the siren and harpy didn’t need to be introduced. It disappointed Josh, because why hadn’t Debby ever told him how adorable Jenna’s roommate was? They could’ve saved time and started dating earlier.

Debby pulled back to give Josh a kiss on the cheek, and ran over to Tyler to do the same.

“C’mon, assholes! Let’s party!” Debby and Jenna yelled and Josh laughed when he saw Tyler deflate with a groan. 

“C’mon, party pooper,” Josh smirked and led his unenthusiastic boyfriend to the beach behind the girls.

The small beach they went to was fairly local to the area and mostly deserted on the coast of Lake Erie. There was no lifeguard (which Tyler complained was _unsafe, there could be sharks!_ ), and the sand was real and soft, unlike the artificial stuff they used for the manufactured beaches back in Columbus. There were a few families already on the beach when they got there, but they had no problem finding a good spot to lay down their towels and bags.

Jenna and Debby discarded their belongings, then stripped down to their swimsuits and headed for the water, already having put on sunscreen before the boys got there. Tyler sighed as he took off his shirt and laid down in the warm sand next to Josh, who was practically glowing with content. Josh kept his tank top on, despite how badly he wanted to feel the sun on his chest and back, but he also didn’t want to freak out Tyler or the families surround them with his wings. Tyler sighed again as he watched Josh struggle to find a good position to stretch out in, not wanting to put so much pressure on his back.

“You should just stretch them out, Josh. No one will care. Debby has her wings out.” Tyler said softly, running a hand through Josh’s faded red hair as Josh settled, stretched out on his stomach, with a huff. 

“Not today, Ty. Okay?” Josh looked up at him with pleading eyes, and Tyler hid his disappointment, but dropped it nonetheless.

“Okay.” Tyler agreed, smiling softly to reassure Josh, before turning to put on sunscreen, cursing Josh underneath his breath because Josh’s tough skin was protected naturally against the ultraviolet rays.

Josh dozed on and off, basking in the sun, the sound of Tyler strumming away on his ukulele and singing lulling him to sleep. Tyler’s voice blended nicely with the murmur of the waves coming into shore, proving a nice rhythm to the melody Tyler was strumming.

Josh awoke to laughter and a jolt of freezing water in his face, and he reacted with an unmanly yelp.

“What the-?” Josh choked out, shaking his head and wiping the water out of his eyes just in time to see Debby running away, cackling. “Debby!” He called after her, getting up and chasing her down the beach, a chorus of laughter coming from Jenna and Tyler behind them. Josh caught up quickly and gathered Debby in his arms, laughing as Debby squawked and he got a wing to the face.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” She laughed, crying out as Josh carried her closer to the water.

“Any last words?” Josh grinned, now waist deep in the water, getting ready to throw her in.

“Yeah,” Debby smirked, “You look like a wet rat.”

Josh dunked her in the cold water.

Awhile later as the sun begin to set, the foursome sat on the beach watching the sky fade into oranges and pinks. Tyler sat leaning back into Josh, Josh’s arms wrapped around him to keep him warm from the cooling air. They were all pretty sleepy from a day out in the sun, and sat in a comfortable silence.

“The colors remind me of your scales,” Tyler said softy, referring to the sky. “So beautiful.” He turned around to cup Josh’s jaw, his other hand softly stroking the scales on his shoulder. Josh blushed and tried to look away, but Tyler brought him back to stare deeply in his eyes. “Beautiful,” he emphasized, leaning in to press his lips to Josh’s.

Josh instantly melted, and he was pretty sure his backbone now resided as a puddle sinking into the sand around them. Josh was absolutely smitten with Tyler. The way he smelled of spicy watermelon and crisp ocean from the saltwater that still clung to his skin and hair. The way he cupped his head so gently with his instrument callused hands. The way he always started their kisses so innocently before getting lost in the passion.

Bright white light flashed behind Josh’s eyelids and he jumped away from Tyler, startled. Debby and Jenna were giggling and making kissing noises next to them as they looked down at a phone, and Josh and Tyler instantly flushed with embarrassment.

“Wow, see if I ever invite you guys out again,” Josh scoffed, showing distaste as the phone was being shoved in his face.

“But you guys are so cute!” Debby exclaimed, laughter still lacing her voice.

The picture was slightly overexposed from the flash, and Josh thought that he looked terrible, but he had to admit that him and Tyler were cute together.

“Fine,” Josh sighed, giving in.

“We should probably build the bonfire now, guys,” Tyler suggested, noticing how dark it had gotten in between watching the sun set and making out with his boyfriend. They all worked cooperatively to put the bonfire together, but Tyler stopped short.

“Uhhh, did anyone bring matches?” Tyler questioned after he finished going through his backpack.

“Shoot,” Jenna swore, going through her bag as well.

“Josh?” Debby questioned, but Josh just shook his head. Debby gave him a look that made Josh uncomfortable, and Josh knew she wasn’t talking about matches. Josh glanced at Tyler who looked just as confused as Josh felt anxious. Josh let out a breath, trying to untangle the knot that was beginning to from inside his chest.

“Fine. But just because I want s’mores,” Josh said under his breath and he got up to go get his backpack. He rummaged around until he found the bag he was looking for and took it out. Josh looked behind him to find the three of his friends staring and he barked out, “Well keep getting the stuff ready!” They obeyed, and Josh sat down near his backpack to watch them, opening the bag and putting its contents in his mouth.

Josh didn’t do this often. Rarely even. He could probably count the amount of times he had done this on one hand. The flint tasted like sand, and as he grounded it down with his teeth, it started to feel like it as well. It never tasted great, even when he had a craving for the earthy mineral. Josh coughed a bit as he swallowed, getting Tyler’s attention. 

“Are you oka- Josh? Are you…eating rocks?”

Josh froze with his hand halfway to his mouth. “Uhh, maybe?” Josh answered unsteadily. 

Debby came to his recue. “Josh is going to make a fire for us, Ty.”

Tyler had a quizzical look on his face that would make Josh laugh if he didn’t feel so insecure at that moment.

“He’s a _dragon_ , Ty,” Debby explained further. It took another minute before Josh could figuratively see the light bulb above Tyler’s head light up.

“Oh! _Oh_. That’s so cool!” Tyler breathed out, looking at Josh with excitement and wide eyes.

Josh was still kind of in shock. “I guess,” he mumbled, putting another piece of flint in his mouth to grind down. Even if Tyler seemed enthusiastic about the fact that Josh could breathe fire, Josh could never get use to the feeling in his gut that he was about to get abandoned. Tyler was understanding, and Josh was beyond grateful for that. Tyler never pushed him to share things he didn’t want to, because Tyler knew Josh wouldn’t force him to share anything personal either. He respected that Josh wasn’t quite ready to let Tyler in all the way yet, and they had a mutual understanding of their boundaries. But that just meant that when one of those boundaries got pushed and something spilled over, Josh wasn’t prepared to deal with the outcome.

Tyler smiled at him knowingly, and turned back to work on prepping the bonfire to give Josh some space.

When they were done, Josh was pretty sure he had consumed enough flint to ignite a fire.

“So like,” Josh started, getting their attention, “I’m not one hundred percent sure this will work. It’s been awhile, but it’s worth a try.” Josh thanked Jenna as she gave him the kindling and he leaned over the fire pit, cradling it in his hands. He took a deep breath and focused on bringing that breath down to his stomach. Josh exhaled slowly, pleased to see smoke slip past his lips. He gently blew on the kindling, increasing the force of his breath until a small flame came out to ignite it. Josh sheltered the smoking kindling from the wind and placed it in the fire pit, adding more to stoke the fire. Soon enough, a small flame was slowly licking itself up the wood. Josh smiled and coughed, feeling like he had just smoked a cigarette.

“Woo! Yeah, Joshie!” Debby clapped, and Tyler and Jenna quickly followed. Josh bowed his head to hide his embarrassed smile.

The fire roared to life soon after, and they all relaxed around the campfire to roast marshmallows and make s’mores. The night went by in a blur after that, the cool air filled with the sound of laughter and firecrackers. With Tyler by his side in the warmth of the fire, and Draco’s stars shining down on them from the endless void above, Josh swore he had never felt so alive.

* * *

Moving in together meant a lot of things. It was a step forward, a new chapter in life. It also saved on gas and rent, which is why Tyler decided to move in with Josh for his third year of pre-med. Josh had asked him of course, and Tyler eagerly agreed since he practically lived there already.

It also meant more time to binge watch seasons of television, which was a favorite past time in the Joseph-Dun apartment. Game of Thrones was a current favorite, and they were rewatching the series to get refreshed for the newest season. Although they decided to forsake the cheese puffs for celery sticks after Josh complained he didn’t have a productive summer when it came to going to the gym and eating healthy.

They were in the middle of season two and Josh was surprised Tyler hadn’t made a Daenerys Targaryen joke yet. Of course, as soon as he thought this, Tyler opened his mouth.

“Hey, Josh,” he piped up from his spot curled into Josh’s side.

“What, Ty,” Josh answered, chewing lazily on a celery stick, wishing it was a Cheeto.

“You could say that I’m like the Dragon Queen, and you’re my little Drogon,” Tyler smiled in amusement at his own thought, but Josh groaned and threw his head back.

“Viserion? Rhaegal? No?” Tyler questioned, naming more dragons, looking at Josh with an pleased smiled on his lips.

“No.” Josh shook his head and looked over at his boyfriend, biting his lip to hold back a smile.

“It doesn’t work for you?”

“No, Ty,” Josh chuckled.

“Dracarys!” Tyler announced loudly, causing Josh to laugh louder. 

“I can’t fire breathe on command, Ty.”

“Oh,” Tyler looked slightly disappointed at this discovery, but pursued nonetheless. “We can train you then,” Tyler giggled at the look of disbelief Josh was giving him.

“You’re an idiot,” Josh declared, breaking out into another round of laughter.

“Yeah, but I’m your idiot.”

“No,” Josh smiled, “You’re my _Khaleesi_.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for the feedback! I tried to get this next part up as soon as my perfectionism allowed, so I hope it lives up to expectation. There's about two to three more parts of this, so please leave kudos and comments for encouragement!
> 
> Also that Game of Thrones scene I wrote had me throwing up rainbows and kittens, it was so fluffy.
> 
> If you wanna discuss headcanons for Dragon!Josh or other TØP supernatural ideas, message me on Tumblr! (Pretty much the rest of this series is just me exploring headcanons for Dragon!Josh).
> 
> [Tumblr](http://summerdownturn.tumblr.com)


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